2014: Rockford’s summer of high school construction

Tuesday

Aug 5, 2014 at 10:39 AMAug 5, 2014 at 4:22 PM

By Corina CurryRockford Register Star

ROCKFORD — All four of Rockford’s public high schools — Auburn, East, Guilford and Jefferson — are under heavy construction this summer, getting everything from 100,000-square-foot field house additions to auditorium renovations and new gymnasium bleachers.

Almost all the work will continue into the school year, meaning returning students and staff will have to deal with ongoing construction, in some cases through May 2015.

Auburn’s $13.1 million field house addition started in summer 2013 and remains a work in progress. Guilford’s $9 million field house addition began last fall with site preparation. East’s $13.5 million project followed in June 2014, as did Jefferson’s $4.2 million renovation.

It may not look like it now, but all four high schools will be ready to open Aug. 25, the first day of school, said Todd Schmidt, the district’s chief operating officer. The new main office at East and new entrance at Jefferson will not be done in time for the first day, Schmidt said. Those projects will need a couple more weeks to complete. East’s office staff will use temporary space and temporary furniture, and Jefferson students and visitors will need to use another entrance until work is done on the new one.

“East is going to be tight,” Schmidt said of the rush to finish in time for school. “The whole traffic pattern of that school is going to change. That’s going to be one that it’s going to take the most getting used to.

“We’re doing a lot of work this summer at all four high schools. ... There may be some challenges at some sites when school starts but nothing major.”

$58 million investment

The district is spending $58 million on projects at the high schools. Here’s a breakdown of what’s being done at each site.

Auburn — $17.8 million

Work includes a field house addition with eight new classrooms, 200-meter track, basketball and volleyball courts, cafeteria expansion, storage and multi-purpose space, a new student-based health clinic (the Rockford School District’s contribution to the $880,000 project is $90,000), new windows, HVAC improvements and paving.

Work includes a field house containing three full-size athletic courts, running track and weight room, auditorium renovations, new windows, HVAC upgrades and paving.

Estimated construction completion: Field house, mid-October.

East — $19 million

Work includes a new field house, 160-meter track, multipurpose and weight rooms, office and classroom renovations, a new front entrance, library demolition, new elevator, outdoor courtyard renovations, boiler removal and replacement, new windows and auditorium renovations.

Estimated construction completion: Field house, May 2015.

Jefferson — $6 million

Work includes new gymnasium bleachers, new flooring, storage room addition, paving, new front entrance, auditorium and gymnasium renovations.

Estimated construction completion: New front entrance, mid-September

Site totals to date are based on awarded construction bids. They do not include work the district is performing internally or change orders. All projects are ongoing.

Why field houses

All high school students take physical education. That’s roughly 7,500 students.

Of those, several hundred participate in athletics at each school.

At peak practice times in the winter, as many as nine teams could be vying for the gymnasium after school. Only one team can have it.

That puts the other teams in other parts of the school — a weight room or multipurpose room if they’re lucky, a hallway if they’re not. Some teams take buses to nearby elementary or middle schools to use their gyms.

Students and coaches at schools like Guilford, Auburn and East have been making do for many years.

“You accommodate and you get creative,” said Augie Toldo, athletic director at Guilford High School. “One of the best parts of this will be having students get through their practices after school instead having to wait around for space and then not getting home until 8 or 8:30 p.m. and still have homework to do. We don’t want that.”